Translation of abstract (English)

The effects of electoral systems on party systems cannot be determined without considering certain contextual factors that influence the causal relationship between electoral system and party system. What effects does an electoral system have in a concrete context? Which electoral system fulfils which function best? This analysis examines the most common types of the three main categories of electoral systems: plurality (First-Past-The-Post), proportional representation in medium-sized and large constituencies and segmented majoritarian systems. Using an innovative selection method a total of 21 cases was chosen, which covers the broadest possible combination of different contextual settings. This enables a systematic comparison of the combined effects of electoral system and context on the party system. The analysis goes back to the introduction of universal suffrage in each of the cases. 239 pages with 47 tables and 12 figures.